Royal Oak mayor doubts city will send letter on human rights ordinance

Royal Oak voters may never see a city letter to residents explaining a controversial human rights ordinance proposal.A group working against the proposal has threatened to file a complaint with the Michigan Bureau of Elections if the city sends the letter.But Mayor Jim Ellison said Wednesday that he doesn’t think there is enough support among commissioners to send out such a letter.“I’m not inclined to support sending out a letter under city auspices,” he said. “I don’t think the letter is going to happen.”There are two opposing campaign groups focused on the ordinance that bans discrimination based on sexual orientation and other personal characteristics from gender to HIV status and pregnancy. Supporters are working with One Royal Oak, while opponents are rallying behind the efforts of the Just Royal Oak to defeat the proposal.Fadwa Gillanders, a clinical pharmacist and spokeswoman for the group against the measure, said she and others plan to show up at the Oct. 7 City Commission meeting to see how the issue of the letter is resolved and to speak out against the proposal.The ordinance is “discrimination because it increases the powers of local government by allowing them to give special protective rights to (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender people),” Gillanders said. “They are doing this by regulating the constitutional amendments for freedom of speech and religion and individual rights of association.”Ellison said he believes information about the human rights ordinance proposal should come from the two opposing camps in the election — and the wording of the actual ordinance.The City Commission voted 5-1 last week to have the city attorney draft a letter explaining the city ballot proposal at the suggestion of Commissioner Jim Rasor, who said a letter would clear up misinformation about the ordinance proposal.Ellison was absent from last week’s commission meeting.“There are going to be misinterpretations no matter what happens,” Ellison said. “Each group is going to offer their own interpretations of what the ordinance is.”City Attorney Dave Gillam has already drafted a letter explaining the human rights ordinance and three City Charter Amendments that are on the Nov. 5 ballot, said City Manager Don Johnson.“The city has an absolute right to explain what is on the ballot,” Johnson said. “What the city can’t do is advocate a position.”The draft letter City Commissioners are expected to vote on Oct. 7 is carefully worded and fails to provide any advocacy for the four city ballot proposals, Johnson said.Violation of the proposed human rights law would be a civil infraction, with fines of up to $500 and the costs of investigation and prosecution.